Michigan State basketball went into the 2024 NCAA Tournament as a team of controversy, getting a No. 9 seed after presumably being on the tournament bubble. The Spartans proved they belong on Thursday.
Michigan State dominated Mississippi State in the Round of 64, winning the matchup 69-51, while never trailing in the game.
The Spartans will now move on in the NCAA Tournament and will most likely face the No. 1 seeded North Carolina Tar Heels, barring an unforeseen upset.
Check out our three takeaways from the Spartans dominating win to open tournament action:
Detroit Free Press
Spartan Nation has been begging to see this version of Michigan State all year long, and the team delivered. The team shot 55% from the field and 41% from 3 and played an all around team game on offense, defense and rebounding to dominate a good Mississippi State team.
If this version of MSU is the version we are going to get throughout the NCAA Tournament, the sky is the limit.
Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images
Jaden Akins showed up and showed up in a big way. Akins has had several abysmal performances over the past few weeks and has seen his game and confidence take a huge hit because of it. All of that went out the window on Thursday.
Akins played to the level fans know he can, and have expected him to play at. This is the version of Akins that the Spartans need night in and night out to hit their ceiling.
Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports
It is cliche to say, but this is Tom Izzo in March and anything can happen. The players have said it all week, and it is true, it’s a new season and the slate is clean for MSU.
The Spartans have a chance to right their wrongs and make this a successful 2023-24 campaign, and they took the first step on Thursday.
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